Total pages in book: 37
Estimated words: 33965 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 170(@200wpm)___ 136(@250wpm)___ 113(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 33965 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 170(@200wpm)___ 136(@250wpm)___ 113(@300wpm)
"Asher says he's always been that way." Brielle laughs quietly. "He says Crue means well. He just doesn't like not being in charge." Her laughter fades. "They didn't have any control for a long time."
"I know," I whisper, my heart pulsing with empathy for them. As a kid, I don't think I realized how much they went through. To me, they were just these incredibly talented guys who also happened to be gorgeous.
I don't think anyone really understood back then just what it was like to be a boy band or to be a worldwide phenomenon. But the curtain has been pulled back on the music industry over the years, and it's ugly behind the scenes. Especially for bands and artists that shoot to superstardom as teenagers. Everyone wants to profit. Very few want to protect.
I'm glad things are different for the guys this time around. They deserve to do it their own way at least once. They earned that much. And it's what the fans want for them, too.
Brielle crawls off my bed, stretching. "You better go before he comes looking for you. I'm going to find Asher."
Right. No time to change.
I spin in a circle, looking for my laptop bag. Brielle spots it before I do. She retrieves it from under the desk, holding it out to me. I run my fingers through my hair, trying to tame the unruly strands—not that it'll do much good. My hair does what it wants when it wants. And then I inhale a deep breath. "Wish me luck."
"I don't think you need it," Brielle says, blowing me a kiss as she ducks out of the door ahead of me. "But break a leg anyway."
"Don't say that," I groan, turning toward the bank of elevators at the opposite end of the hall. "I might actually break one."
Brielle's laughter floats after me as she heads down the hall toward her room…which is basically the room she's sharing with Asher at this point. I can't believe they're together! I mean, I can believe it because Brielle is amazing. Why wouldn't Asher fall for her? But I can't believe I missed it!
I didn't get to join the fun until this morning. Thanks to my internship, I've missed the first half of the tour. Shelby has been keeping me updated, but it's not the same. I missed all the good parts!
It's been a whirlwind for my sister and our friends, that's for sure.
Resa is glowing. Brielle is happier than she's ever been. Chastity has a permanent smile on her face. Shelby swears her relationship with Jameson is fake, but, well, I know my big sister better than anyone. She's lying to herself and has been since the beginning. Besides, New York kind of changed everything. As it turns out, even from half a continent away, I still know her better than she thinks I do. Never in a million billion years did I think following Soul Obsession on their reunion tour would turn out like this for the people I love most, but I'm so freaking happy for them.
They're madly in love. I'm getting the interview of a lifetime. Life is good. Actually, it's great. If my journalism professor could see me right now, he'd lose his mind.
I giggle at the thought, pressing the button for the elevator. I peek over the balcony, watching water spray up from the fountain in the lobby. The hotel is seriously nice. Way better than my tiny little dorm room at Northwestern or the room I've been renting for the last couple of months.
The doors of the elevator slide open, and I bounce inside, a bundle of raw nerves and anxiety. I'm going up to Crue Blake's room. As soon as the doors slide closed, I bust a move, dancing in the elevator like a crazy person. I don't even care if security is watching me right now.
My first interview is my dream interview. No one is dulling my shine today.
"Jesus."
I squeak, spinning around so fast my laptop bag smacks me in the knee. It buckles and I stumble, nearly falling on my face. I catch myself on the handrail, meeting Crue's gaze. Humor dances in his hazel eyes, softening him. For just a moment, I see traces of the boy he used to be…the one who drove the whole world crazy with his crooked grin and insane talent.
The man he grew into is something else altogether. Young Crue was a mere hint of what this man would become. There's a hardness to him that was never there before. He's all sex and sin and control, with tattoos climbing up his neck and down his arms. I don't know what story they tell, but they're etched into his skin like armor.
I think he hides behind them, holding the whole world at bay. Just like he's hidden from the world for the last ten years, disappearing to Nashville and pretending the seven years before that never happened. He's an enigma, a beautiful puzzle. And he's haunted my mind for far too long.